It is an anguished and oft-used chant from football
fans: "You're not fit to wear the shirt". Well, I'm sorry, but I
found myself humming the same tune when I watched Liverpool lose
2-0 to Fiorentina in the Champions League in Italy.
I'll name names, too: Lucas Leiva, Emiliano Insua, Fabio
Aurelio, Martin Skrtel. Are they really fit to wear the Liverpool
shirt? Are they really up for it or up to it? Not from what I saw
on Tuesday night, nor from what I've seen previously.
Up for it? I suppose possibly, marginally. I don't think I could
question their comittment or attempts to fight for the cause. But
up to it? I don't think so. They're just not good enough,
especially Lucas.
The Brazilian is probably one of the most un-South American
players I've ever seen and his impact in midfield, at best, appears
negligible. If Steven Gerrard is off the boil, others have to step
up to the plate. Lucas disappears; responsibility is not his forte.
Not that Aurelio, another Brazilian, gave him much support. He was
similarly woeful.
Insua, the left back, cannot defend for love nor money and
Skrtel, all 6ft 4in of him, was given the runaround by Stevan
Jovetic. OK, the Montenegrin is being billed as the next wunderkind
of European football but, for goodness sake, Skrtel should be able
to handle him. Allowing yourself to be bullied by a 19-year-old kid
is simply embarrassing.
This foursome is just gruesome and I fail to comprehend why Rafa
Benitez bought them. I don't see Manchester United, Chelsea or
Arsenal having four first-team players not good enough to slip on
the jersey. Those teams don't carry passengers.
While I'm at it, is Glen Johnson really a £17 million right
back? Yes, he's good going forward. You get your £17 million-worth
then. As a defender, though, he plays like a £500,000 Portsmouth
reject. When he gambles along the right flank, Liverpool have no
protection, no cover, no safety net. Along with Joleon Lescott, at
£22 million, Johnson is the most overpriced of the summer
signings.
Gerrard, on song, is superb. Javier Mascherano also and Fernando
Torres is in a class of his own. Yossi Benayoun is a decent player,
though it's always him who seems to be sacrificed after a defeat,
while Alberto Aquilani could provide a boost when he recovers from
injury. But when Liverpool are bad, they are really bad, like they
were against Fiorentina and against Tottenham and Aston Villa in
the league.
United, Chelsea and, occasionally, Arsenal can do ugly. They
find ways to win when they are not playing well. They have other
players who can lift their game when the superstars are struggling.
What or who can Benitez call on? Not a lot. I see grim times ahead
for Liverpool. Tuesday night might not be a one-off.
Tony Cascarino
